"Alfred Russell Stone was born in and attended elementary school in Highgate"

"He attended semenary school and wrote two theses over his years of education, one on the migration of people from rural regions and one on missionary activity in Japan."

"My sister, Georgina, just returned from Japan where she was visiting her son and daughter-in-law. While she was there she visited a memorial dedicated to missionary Alfred Russell Stone, born 1902 died 1952."

"He was issued an Order of the Rising Sun by the nation of Japan for his contribution to rural life in Japan. He drowned in a ferry accident in 1952."

From the Ridgetown District High School Hall of Excellence Web site:

"Some are noteworthy for what they gain, others for what they give. In 1926 missionary Alfred Stone went to Japan where his education in political economics greatly improved the financial stability of many rural Japanese. Home, during the war, Stone returned to Japan in 1946. In 1954 the ship on which he was a passenger sank. Stone was among 1,155 lost. The Japanese press said Stone gave his own lifejacket to a university student who had none. Japan posthumously granted this Highgate native the Order of the Rising Sun for his outstanding contributions to relations with Japan."

Notes from The 100 Greatest Disasters of All Time by Stephen J. Spignesi: "1,155 dead" "ranks as one of the worst ship disasters of all time" [3, 7]